Scrub Your Veggies with Baking Soda (and Other Tips)

The baking soda might not be the flashiest addition to a kitchen cabinet, but it is a bona fide workhorse all around the house. Its ability is to neutralize acids.

And it has a fancy name, sodium bicarbonate. But be sure not to mix up baking soda with baking powder.

Make a fruit-and-veggie scrub.

If you are tired of dirty produce, then there is a way to scrub it, and it will help remove grit, pesticides, and whatever else made its way onto the products. All you need to do is add a few tablespoons of baking soda to water and use it to scrub the produce, but be sure to rinse thoroughly afterward for fresh-tasting, clean produce.

Treat a sunburn.

If you want to soothe the pain of sunburn, all you need to do is add about a cup of baking soda to warm water and submerse affected skin for as long as you want to.

Use it as an antacid.

Baking soda can be an effective antacid for regular heartburn victims or folks who ate a few too many tamales. You only need to take a ½ teaspoon in a full glass of water after meals for relief. But be sure to check with a physician before you take this treatment if you are careful with your sodium because baking soda contains a high amount of sodium.

Brush your teeth.

If you are out of toothpaste, you can make a thick baking soda paste using three-percent hydrogen peroxide solution. You can scoop it up with a toothbrush for a quick and cheap substitute that could help kill harmful bacteria in the mouth.

Fight fires.

If there is a small kitchen blaze or a grease fire, you just need to toss baking soda on the hot spot to help contain the flames. When it is heated, the baking soda releases carbon dioxide, which helps stifle the fire.